Every Thanksgiving, there is one dish that my mother has to prepare or the entire day is ruined. I suppose every family has one of those dishes for special holidays and if you like the spice, you’ll want to add this one to your featured side items.
In all honesty, this recipe did not originate from my mom. It is the handy work of a schoolteacher by the name of Joan Bane. She lived and taught government in New London, Texas. Her son actually married my cousin so I guess you could call this a family recipe by marriage.
Good food should be the result of good match making and that’s what you get with this side. There is just enough cream cheese and corn to soften the hot on the peppers. However, if you think this dish might limit out your taste buds, simply cut back on the peppers.
I will warn you though. This is the dish you’ll keep going back to the fridge for along with your turkey sandwiches. You can’t beat it around midnight with an ice cold coke. I watched my brother-in-law finish three helpings of it last November. A sight to see.
5 cans shoe peg corn (white)
1 can jalapenos (small)
½ stick butter
3 Tablespoons of flour
2 eight ounces of cream cheese
¼ cup of milk
Drain the shoe peg corn and jalepenos. Either let your cream cheese soften naturally or put it in the microwave for a minute or two just to get it soft. In a mixing bowl, add cream cheese, butter, flour and milk. Stir in corn and jalapenos and mix thoroughly.
There have been times in my life when someone might have suggested that I go see or experience some thing or some place. At that point, you start to try and visualize whatever it is they’re talking about. When you actually arrive at the recommendation, you’re either pleasantly surprised while other times you’re disappointed. Kind of like someone recommending a movie and you either like it or you don’t. Never much of an in-between.
This would be the case of Caddo Lake and the first time my father ever took me to Uncertain, Texas. I was in my sophomore year in college and he made the suggestion that we go fishing. Since I had never been to Caddo, that might be a good place to try as he had fished there many times in his youth and he wanted me to see the lake.
Growing up in the region, I had sadly never been to Caddo Lake. It’s important to note that Caddo had long lost its luster for fishing by the 70s when newly created Toledo Ben became the hottest fishing lake around. Many mornings as a kid, I slept in the floorboard of a dark green Pontiac pulling a boat headed towards a full day of fishing on this massive reservoir lake. I had never even heard of Caddo until my dad suggested it.
I’ve read several articles and seen hundreds of images placing Caddo as a point of interest and they all fall short in my opinion. The articles as well as the photography are mere pinpricks against a massive rock mountain. And why would I say this? If you look at a picture of an elephant, it’s an elephant. Not much else going on with it and it just doesn’t pack much of a punch. Now take that same elephant and put yourself four feet in front of it and it’s a little different. You are now aware of how massive they are and you begin to understand what an amazing animal the elephant really is.
The same is true for Caddo Lake. I’ve never read or seen anything that would match the impact created by being in the middle of this 25,400 acre lake covered in cypress trees dressed in Spanish moss. It’s truly another dimension in itself and for a moment you feel like you’ve gone back in time. At any second, you’re under the illusion that you might see a prehistoric animal. And you’re not that far off as I’ve met some fishing guides that could pass as prehistoric animals.
Like the elephant, it is massive in person. So massive, that it’s not uncommon that you would get lost among all the waterways and trees. I ventured out one afternoon with some friends on what we thought would be a short cruise. Before we knew it, a dark cloud had rolled in and it started to rain. A couple of wrong turns later and we had no idea where we were. When the lightning started flashing, one of my best friends smiled at me and said, “Man I hope all you boys have been tithing.”
The lake was named after the Caddo Indians who lived within the area until their expulsion in the 19th century. It is said to be the home of 189 species of trees, 216 species of birds, 90 different fish and reptiles and 47 different mammals.
Located on the Texas Louisiana border, it is the only natural lake in the state of Texas. According to legend, the lake was created by an earthquake in 1812 but it’s more likely that it formed gradually by the “Great Raft” which was a 100 mile long log jam on the Red River in Louisiana.
Whatever the case, I will say that there is no amount of writing that will prepare you for the Caddo experience. Even if you’re not a fisherman, it’s well worth a boat tour. Or what the locals call a go-devil tour which is a flat bottom boat attached to an extended propeller capable of getting you anywhere in the swamp.
And yes, there are alligators. So make sure you invite that coworker who gets on your nerves. Tell them you’re all going swimming.
Growing up in a small town certainly had its advantages. My only worry in the world was getting to the drugstore in time to make the latest additions of all the comic books. A coke float and brand new Spider-Man and I was on my way. However, living in an environment such as this, you are limited to your surroundings.
It was in this environment that a little boy I knew would take up an almost impossible challenge of becoming a classically trained violinist. If you can imagine the amount of animosity that he faced growing up in the woods. Surrounded by an almost dominant country music market, his struggles were many as his peers challenged his efforts within this kind of music. This music that was so foreign to all of us.
That little boy would be my first introduction to classical music but it would not be until my adult life that I would begin to understand the music and develop an appreciation for it. And it’s not easy. It took me almost two years to develop this kind of musical palate and in all honesty, I was forced to do it.
In 1998, I was selected as agency of record for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. The marketing director at that time made the executive decision that if an East Texas boy was going to sell classical music, he better start understanding it. So to school I went.
Now before I get into the weird part of this article, let me preface it by saying that classical music is complicated. It can have several parts, or movements, to one song. Kind of like chapters in a book. And to add to the complexity of the music, there are at least 100 musicians on stage at one time. Now I’m a musician and that’s nuts to me. The amount of different things going on all at once is mind boggling and it can be very overwhelming if you really listen to it. Kind of like drinking from a fire hose.
And this would be when it gets weird.
About two years into going to the symphony every Thursday, something happened to me sitting in that chair. I became capable of listening to everything at once and it began to take me somewhere else. Almost like a religious experience. It’s really hard to explain it but the music moved me in such a way that I became completely immersed within it almost like having tunnel vision.
Now I know most of you out there are thinking there is no way I’m going to sit in a chair for two years in order to appreciate classical music. And I’m not suggesting that you do. I think I would have taken to it a lot quicker if perhaps I had gotten a milder taste of the hot sauce rather than drinking an entire cup of Tobasco every Thursday night. Slowly wading into the shallow end instead of jumping into the deep end without knowing how to swim is always a better way to go.
So I’m going to make a suggestion and you can take it as an experiment if you dare. There are two guys that are widely known as the very best in classically trained guitarists. Brazilian brothers Sergio and Odair Assad might be the greatest players you will ever hear. The kicker with them is that they are highly skilled at reworking symphony music themselves creating their own arrangements. So figure scaling a song written for 100 musicians down for two guys on guitar. And perhaps by scaling down the complexity of the music, it might be a good place to start without trying to drink from the fire hose.
Below is a performance by Sergio and Odair Assad. If you click it, I recommend that you really listen to the music which means earphones if you have them. Music like this is meant to be listened to carefully and takes some effort.
So turn off the rest of the world and give it a chance. You’ll be glad you did.
Every Thanksgiving, there is one dish that my mother has to prepare or the entire day is ruined. I suppose every family has one of those dishes for special holidays and if you like the spice, you’ll want to add this one to your featured side items.
